A little over a year ago, I posted about Charities with Local-Pickup service. I’d like to follow up with a list of places to take your stuff if you don’t live in an area with door-step service or if you just want that stuff outta there and don’t want to wait till the next available pickup date.
So here is a list of charities that have drop-locations where you can take used items:
USA National Charities for Item Drop-off:
- AMVETS (American Veterans National Service Foundation) http://www.amvetsnsf.org/stores.html
- Goodwill: http://locator.goodwill.org
- Habitat for Humanity ReStores: http://www.habitat.org/env/restores.aspx
- Salvation Army: http://www.satruck.com/donate-goods
USA Limited-Location Charities for Item Drop-off:
- Planet Aid: http://www.planetaid.org/
In Canada:
- Canadian Diabetes Association (Canada only): http://www.diabetes.ca/get-involved/supporting-us/clothesline/find-a-dropbox/
I’ll continue to update these lists as I find out about more, so please DO leave a comment if you know of one I missed!
Don’t forget to:
- Itemize your donations if you want to right them off on your taxes (I recommend taking digital pictures as proof & I recommend using itsdeductible.com as a guide for how much of a deduction to take for each item).
- Obtain a receipt at the drop-off location.
- Only donate goods that are in reasonably good condition. You can’t deduct items that are ‘fair’ quality on your taxes, and poor quality materials shouldn’t be donated, anyway. Please don’t donate what ought to be thrown away.
I came across this posting today and wanted to mention http://www.gooddonor.org as another way to donate items. I’ve scheduled multiple pickups with them and it’s really easy–they come right to your house and take it away for free. They let you schedule your pickup by a specific date or with a specific charity. I highly recommend it!
I’m not sure that Planet Aid is a legitimate charity and should be listed here. There have been reports about it, even on 60 Minutes. Google it. Just to mention that it might not be a good idea to give your things to them. Check first.